HOUSE DOCKET, NO FILED ON: 11/18/2013. HOUSE... No The Commonwealth of Massachusetts PRESENTED BY: Randy Hunt

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1 HOUSE DOCKET, NO FILED ON: 11/18/2013 HOUSE No The Commonwealth of Massachusetts PRESENTED BY: Randy Hunt To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General Court assembled: The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill: An Act to provide Addiction/Sobriety Solutions through Increased Substance Treatment (ASSIST). PETITION OF: NAME: Randy Hunt Brian M. Ashe Gailanne M. Cariddi Claire D. Cronin Josh S. Cutler Diana DiZoglio Kenneth J. Donnelly Carolyn C. Dykema Tricia Farley-Bouvier Ann-Margaret Ferrante Anne M. Gobi Jonathan Hecht Paul R. Heroux Donald Humason Bradley H. Jones, Jr. John D. Keenan Timothy R. Madden DISTRICT/ADDRESS: 5th Barnstable 2nd Hampden 1st Berkshire 11th Plymouth 6th Plymouth 14th Essex Fourth Middlesex 8th Middlesex 3rd Berkshire 5th Essex 5th Worcester 29th Middlesex 2nd Bristol 20th Middlesex 7th Essex Barnstable, Dukes and Nantucket 1 of 6

2 Elizabeth A. Malia Brian R. Mannal Leonard Mirra Sarah K. Peake Elizabeth A. Poirier Michael J. Rodrigues David M. Rogers Cleon H. Turner David T. Vieira Martin J. Walsh Daniel A. Wolf Jonathan D. Zlotnik 11th Suffolk 2nd Barnstable 2nd Essex 4th Barnstable 14th Bristol First Bristol and Plymouth 24th Middlesex 1st Barnstable 3rd Barnstable 13th Suffolk Cape and Islands 2nd Worcester 2 of 6

3 HOUSE DOCKET, NO FILED ON: 11/18/2013 HOUSE No By Mr. Hunt of Sandwich, a petition (subject to Joint Rule 12) of Randy Hunt and others for an investigation by a special commission (including members of the General Court) relative to mandated treatment and monitoring of nonviolent offenders with substance addictions. Mental Health and Substance Abuse. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts In the Year Two Thousand Thirteen An Act to provide Addiction/Sobriety Solutions through Increased Substance Treatment (ASSIST). Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: 1 SECTION 1. There is hereby established a special commission for the purposes of 2 developing eligibility criteria for mandated treatment or monitoring of nonviolent offenders with 3 substance addictions and proposing reforms. The court addiction commission shall consist of the 4 court administrator or designee, who shall serve as the chair; the chief justice of the trial court or 5 designee; the attorney general or designee; the secretary of public safety and security or 6 designee; the commissioner of the department of correction or designee; the chair of the parole 7 board or designee; the commissioner of the department of probation or designee; the chief 8 counsel of the committee for public counsel services or designee; one member of the senate, 9 appointed by the senate president; one member of the senate, appointed by the senate minority 10 leader; one member of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house; one 11 member of the house of representatives, appointed by the house minority leader; the president of 12 the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association or designee; the president of the Massachusetts 13 Bar Association or designee; one substance addiction treatment expert, appointed by the 14 governor; and one mental health treatment expert, appointed by the governor. 15 SECTION 2. Such investigation and study shall include, but not be limited to: (a) 16 evaluation of the application and effectiveness of Standards on Substance Abuse, approved by 17 the justices of the supreme judicial court on April 28, 1998, and recommendations to improve 18 and ensure the consistent application of the standards in the courts; (b) evaluation and 19 recommendations for improvement of specialty courts that address substance addictions, 20 including current eligibility requirements or practices, availability of such courts, and use of best 3 of 6

4 21 practices in establishing quality of services; (c) evaluation of the number and type of nonviolent 22 offenses committed by substance addicted defendants adjudicated in the commonwealth; (d) 23 development of a definition of nonviolent substance addicted offender; (e) consideration of 24 removing judiciary discretion relative to sentencing nonviolent substance addicted offenders with 25 no prior felony convictions to a period of incarceration versus sending such offenders to a 26 treatment program; (f) consideration of eliminating or adjusting mandatory minimum sentencing 27 for nonviolent substance addicted offenders; and (g) an estimate of the total annual number of 28 nonviolent substance addicted offenders who would require addiction treatment upon adoption of 29 new or amended laws as proposed by the court addiction commission, to be shared with the 30 addiction services commission established in SECTION The court addiction commission shall submit its report and findings, along with any draft 32 of legislation, to the house and senate committees on ways and means, the joint committee on the 33 judiciary, and the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate on or before December 31, SECTION 3. Chapter 38 of the Acts of 2013 shall be amended by inserting the 36 following: XXXX For the administration and research expenditures of the court addiction 38 commission $100, SECTION 4. There is hereby established a special commission for the purposes of 40 developing plans to expand effective, evidence based addiction treatment programs for 41 nonviolent substance addicted offenders, whether government managed, privately managed, or 42 managed by public/private partnerships. The addiction services commission shall consist of the 43 commissioner of the department of public health or designee, who shall serve as the chair; the 44 director of the bureau of substance abuse services or designee; the commissioner of the 45 department of mental health or designee; the secretary of the department of veterans services or 46 designee; the chief justice of the trial court or designee; the court administrator or designee; the 47 secretary of public safety and security or designee; the commissioner of the department of 48 correction or designee; the commissioner of the department of probation or designee; one 49 member of the senate, appointed by the senate president; one member of the senate, appointed by 50 the senate minority leader; one member of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker 51 of the house; one member of the house of representatives, appointed by the house minority 52 leader; one substance addiction treatment expert, appointed by the governor; and one mental 53 health treatment expert, appointed by the governor. 54 SECTION 5. Such investigation and study shall include, but not be limited to: (a) an 55 examination of best practices relative to specialty courts that deal with substance addicted 56 offenders, both within the commonwealth and in other states; (b) an assessment of the quantity, 57 quality and availability of effective, evidence based addiction treatment programs in the 4 of 6

5 58 commonwealth; (c) the optimum number and estimated expansion costs associated with the drug 59 courts necessary to meet the needs of the total annual number of nonviolent substance addicted 60 offenders as estimated by the court addiction commission; (d) an assessment of the cost of 61 expanding addiction treatment resources to meet the needs of the total annual number of 62 nonviolent substance addicted offenders; and (e) the probable savings of diverting nonviolent 63 substance addicted offenders to treatment versus incarceration in terms of reduced government 64 expenditures and estimated reduction in inmate population at the commonwealth s correctional 65 facilities, to be shared with the correctional facilities commission established in SECTION The Commission shall submit its report and findings, along with any draft of legislation, 67 to the house and senate committees on ways and means, the joint committee on public health, the 68 joint committee on veterans and federal affairs, the joint committee on mental health and 69 substance abuse, and the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate on or before 70 December 31, SECTION 6. Chapter 38 of the Acts of 2013 shall be amended by inserting the 72 following: XXXX For the administration and research expenditures of the addiction services 74 commission $100, SECTION 7. There is hereby established a special commission for the purposes of 76 determining the effects of a reduced prison and jail population on the operations and capital 77 needs of the corrections system. The correctional facilities commission shall consist of the 78 commissioner of the department of correction or designee, who shall serve as chair; the secretary 79 of public safety and security or designee; the president of the Massachusetts Sheriff s 80 Association or designee; the secretary of administration and finance or designee; the 81 commissioner of the department of capital asset management and maintenance or designee; one 82 member of the senate, appointed by the senate president; one member of the senate, appointed by 83 the senate minority leader; one member of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker 84 of the house; one member of the house of representatives, appointed by the house minority 85 leader; and two leaders of unions that represent correctional facility workers, appointed by the 86 governor. 87 SECTION 8. Such investigation and study shall include but not be limited to: (a) an 88 evaluation of current jail and prison populations; (b) an examination of current correctional 89 facilities and any plans to build facilities; (c) the capital needs of the corrections system; (d) the 90 probable impact that expanded treatment programs and diversion programs for nonviolent 91 substance addicted offenders would have on the current jail and prison populations, based on the 92 estimate of reduced number of inmates provided by the addiction services commission; and (e) 93 coordination with the addiction services commission relative to correctional system employees 94 filling roles within an expanded specialty court network. 5 of 6

6 95 96 The Commission shall submit its report and findings, along with any draft of legislation, 97 to the house and senate committees on ways and means, the joint committee on public safety and 98 homeland security, the house committee on bonding, capital expenditures and state assets, and 99 the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate on or before December 31, SECTION 9. Chapter 38 of the Acts of 2013 shall be amended by inserting the 101 following: XXXX For the administration and research expenditures of the correctional 103 facilities commission $50,000 6 of 6